The child who loved home most chose the road that took him farthest from it.
After spending two days being “the child” at home, Jiang Chengzhou boarded the train to the capital once more.
After Jiang Chengzhou left, Su Li still didn’t become the family’s darling.
That was because Linlin had started her senior year of high school this semester.
She had worked herself into a constant state of tension. Lin Zhilan and Su Lang, meanwhile, worried that she was working too hard and putting too much pressure on herself.
Su Li became his sister’s alarm clock, calling her out for a walk at the same time every day.
The siblings usually walked from home to the seaside, strolled around for a while, then headed back, stopping by the fishermen’s houses to buy some fresh seafood along the way.
They usually went to Yan Yuan’s house.
Yan Yuan’s grandfather was too old to go out to sea anymore.
Yan Yuan didn’t have to pay tuition for college, and he could even save some of the school subsidies to send home.
Grandpa Yan wasn’t short of money, but he had grown accustomed to combing the shore for anything he could find, gathering shellfish and the like to sell and save for Yan Yuan.
The whole family loved eating shellfish, so every few days they would make a trip to the Yan family’s house and help finish packing up whatever Grandpa Yan had collected.
When the siblings reached the gate of Grandpa Yan’s house, the setting sun was slowly sinking over the sea, gilding the entire surface with a golden afterglow.
The courtyard was utterly quiet, and several pieces of kelp hung from a bamboo tray nearby.
Linlin knocked on the door and called out several times, but no one answered.
Su Li backed up a few steps, then used the momentum to vault onto the wall.
“Sis, all the doors inside are closed. Grandpa Yan doesn’t seem to be home.”
Linlin’s heart gave a sudden lurch.
It was almost dark. Grandpa Yan definitely wouldn’t have gone out at this hour. Could something have happened to him?
Her heart tightened. “Li Li, jump in and take a look. See if anyone’s inside.”
“Okay.” Su Li gripped the top of the wall and jumped into the courtyard.
He knocked on the door too, only to discover that it was locked from the inside. He hurried to the side window, pressed his face against the glass, and peered in.
“Sis! Grandpa Yan has fallen!”
Linlin was startled. “Open the courtyard gate first and let me in.”
Su Li quickly opened the gate.
The siblings ran to the house and pounded on the door. “Grandpa Yan! Grandpa Yan!”
Linlin was the first to regain her composure. “We can’t do this. We’ll have to force the door open!”
The two of them scrambled around the courtyard looking for tools.
Unfortunately, the door was bolted from the inside, and they couldn’t pry it open. The more anxious they became, the more chaotic everything got.
Su Li tossed aside the iron ball in his hand and took two steps back. “Sis, move aside. I’ll ram the door.”
Linlin hadn’t even had time to reply before Su Li slammed his shoulder into it.
The doorframe gave a deep, muffled bang, but the door didn’t budge.
Su Li didn’t give up. He stepped back and charged again.
After four or five consecutive impacts, he finally broke the bolt on the other side.
Linlin rushed inside and saw Grandpa Yan lying flat on his back on the floor, his face ashen and his lips blue-purple.
Without sparing a thought for anything else, she dropped to her knees and felt for the pulse at his neck.
He still had a pulse, and he was breathing.
Linlin took a deep breath and looked up at Su Li. “Go get Mom. I’ll stay here with him.”
Su Li turned and ran. When he reached the doorway, he stopped short and glanced back at Linlin. “Sis, can you manage by yourself?”
“I can. Go!”
Su Li didn’t hesitate again and sprinted away.
Linlin did her best to stay calm. She straightened Grandpa Yan’s body and undid the buttons at his collar.
Then she pushed open the windows to let in some air.
Only after that did she return to his side and press the Neiguan acupoint on his wrist.
She remembered what her mother had said: when an elderly person fainted and their lips turned blue, the first thing to consider was a heart-related emergency.
The Neiguan acupoint was the primary emergency point for the heart.
Linlin was already panicking inside, and even the hand pressing the acupoint was trembling.
Thankfully, after several minutes, a thick, muddled sound suddenly came from Grandpa Yan’s throat. His eyelids fluttered, and he slowly opened them a sliver.
Tears instantly welled in Linlin’s eyes. “Grandpa Yan, don’t be afraid. My mom will be here soon.”
Grandpa Yan’s cloudy eyes shifted around. His lips moved a few times, and his voice came out as faint as a breath. “Lin… Linlin.”
“Yes, I’m here.”
He pointed outside and said with difficulty, “Under the straw raincoat outside… there’s a bucket. There are shellfish in it.”
“I know. Please don’t talk anymore,” Linlin said through her tears.
Grandpa Yan gave a feeble smile. When someone reached the end of their life, perhaps they could sense it coming.
He took a breath and continued, “Good girl, tell Yan Yuan… under the head of the bed in his room, there’s a brick. Inside it is a cloth bundle… It’s what I’ve saved over the years… for him to get married…”
“Grandpa Yan, don’t say anything else. Wait until Xiao Yuan comes back, and tell him yourself.”
Grandpa Yan looked as though he were making his final arrangements. His appearance frightened Linlin so badly that her face turned pale. Tears fell one after another as she repeatedly glanced toward the doorway, hoping her mother would appear soon.
The only person Grandpa Yan had on his mind was his grandson, Yan Yuan. After entrusting Linlin with these words, he closed his eyes again.
Linlin’s palms were slick with sweat, but she didn’t dare stop pressing the acupoint for even a moment.
Fortunately, Lin Zhilan and Su Lang arrived soon, with Commander Han and Liang Ping following behind them.
Li Jiang and Regimental Commander Ma had both gone out on missions. Thankfully, this father-and-son pair was at home.
“Mom!” Linlin cried, her voice breaking as though she had seen a savior.
“Don’t be scared, baby.”
Lin Zhilan hurried over, crouched down, and lifted Grandpa Yan’s eyelids to examine them. She checked his pulse, then immediately took out some quick-acting heart medication from her medical kit and placed several pills beneath his tongue.
“Su Lang, Uncle Yan can’t be carried on someone’s back right now. Can we get a stretcher?”
Su Lang nodded. He and Commander Han removed the door panel, laid a quilt over it, and made a simple stretcher.
Working together, they lifted Grandpa Yan onto it and took him to the hospital.
Lin Zhilan inserted acupuncture needles and treated him in the hospital ward. Commander Han had already gone home, while Su Lang stayed in the corridor with the two children.
Liang Ping hadn’t left either.
He and Yan Yuan were close, and he was deeply worried about Grandpa Yan’s condition.
Linlin was still crying. Su Li sighed. “Sis, stop crying. Your eyes will swell up, and then you won’t be able to do your homework.”
His sister was a bookworm. No matter how pretty she was, she was still just a pretty bookworm.
When Su Li tried to comfort someone, he always prescribed the right remedy for the illness. For his sister, homework was the most effective cure.
Linlin sniffed twice and glanced at her brother, only to cry even harder.
She was scared.
Linlin had always been doted on by her grandparents and the older generation in the family. Grandpa Yan was no exception. Whenever Yan Yuan wasn’t home and Grandpa Yan found a pretty seashell, he would set it aside specially for her, stringing it into a wind chime or bracelet as a gift.
Linlin had never felt death come so close to someone she loved.
How could she not be afraid?
Su Li tried everything he could think of, but still couldn’t make his sister smile. In the end, he could only turn to his father for help.
Su Lang crouched down and wiped his daughter’s tears with his sleeve. “Did it frighten you? It’s all right, don’t be scared. You and Li Li go home and get some sleep. You still have school tomorrow.”
Linlin shook her head and said in a muffled voice, “I want to wait here for Mom.”
Su Lang sighed and didn’t try to persuade her anymore. “All right. You won’t go to school tomorrow. I’ll ask for leave for you.”
